Apple dethrones South Korean rival after 12 years; Xiaomi, Honor, and Google dominate Android market.
Apple has surpassed Samsung in global smartphone sales, breaking the Korean company’s 12-year leadership. In 2023, iPhone claimed the top spot with 234.6 million units sold, outpacing Samsung’s 226.6 million, according to the International Data Corporation (IDC). IDC attributes Apple’s success, marked by the release of iPhone 15 in September, to trends such as the growing preference for high-end devices, constituting over 20% of the market.
In 2010, a company other than Samsung last held the smartphone market’s pinnacle, and in 2023, that position now belongs to Apple,” stated IDC. “This shift in power within the largest consumer electronics market is fueled by Apple’s unprecedented market share and its first-time ascent to the top.”
The US tech giant, valued at $2.8 trillion (£2.2 trillion), claimed a 20.1% market share, surpassing Samsung’s 19.4%, according to IDC. While Apple is well-established as the leading smartphone manufacturer in terms of revenue and profits, this marks its inaugural leadership in market volume.
The sales figures were reported prior to Samsung’s recent unveiling of new models, including the Galaxy S24, S24 Plus, and S24 Ultra with AI-driven features. Ben Wood, chief analyst at CCS Insight, acknowledged the IDC data as a “psychological” setback for Samsung but anticipates a closely contested competition in 2024. He noted Apple’s robust trajectory and the strong consumer loyalty to Apple devices, emphasizing that once users adopt Apple, they seldom switch to alternatives.
Wood emphasized that the data underscored the significance of Samsung’s product launch on Wednesday.
“This underscores the imperative for Samsung to exert every effort in retaining current users while also attracting new customers for its devices.”
IDC also highlighted a growing fragmentation in the market for Android-operated smartphones, noting the presence of low-end competitors to Samsung like Transsion and Xiaomi, along with Honor and Google.
The IDC attributed Samsung’s decline in sales to the success of Huawei’s well-received products in China. Additionally, it emphasized that Huawei remained a formidable competitor to Apple in China, which is the largest market for the U.S. company.
According to IDC, global smartphone shipments experienced a 3.2% decline, reaching 1.17 billion units in 2023. However, the IDC expressed optimism about the industry’s recovery after a sluggish period, stating that growth in the second half of the year has solidified expectations for a recovery in 2024.
In a noteworthy development last week, Microsoft surpassed Apple as the world’s most valuable company, with a valuation of $2.9 trillion.
